Itachi Drabbles
by RavenStark
Summary: A series of drabbles dealing with the life of Itachi Uchiha. Rated T at the moment, but will change for later chapters for Yaoi and language. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Itachi stopped running among the trees for a moment to catch his breath. He was absolutely exhausted. Every muscle in his body felt like it was engulfed in flames, and yet he still had ten miles to go until he even reached the Akatsuki base. He had failed to keep himself from being noticed. And now the elite Jônin of Konoha were tailing him, trying to discover the whereabouts of the Akatsuki base. Itachi could hear them coming closer, but he was simply too tired to jump his current path and lose them. The only thing he had energy for was to keep his Sharingan going and to breathe shallowly until he regained his composure. Itachi heard some rustling noises coming from a bush just below his tree. He looked down to see a closed fist sticking out of the leaves, which opened to reveal a slightly drooling tongue. _Deidara_, Itachi realized. The index finger of the hand pointed down toward the bush, the tongue slipping back inside the skin. Deidara's disembodied voice reached Itachi, saying, "Down here, un."

Without hesitation, Itachi slipped off the tree limb where he'd been crouching and landed softly next to the bush. He could sense the Jônin coming ever closer as he stiffly crawled into the bush, spotting Deidara's blonde ponytail hovering above light blue eyes that always smiled even when their owner was angry or sad. Itachi shook his head to clear it of these weird thoughts. Deidara pulled at a metal ring on the ground and a wooden trapdoor began freeing itself of a layer of dirt, revealing a black pit that Itachi knew to be a tunnel that led to the base. A very _long_ tunnel, if he remembered correctly. Deidara smirked inwardly when he remembered that Itachi loathed getting dirty in any fashion. He kept this fact to himself as Itachi dropped down into the darkness below, with Deidara not too far behind.


	2. Chapter 2

Itachi had been sitting in the "common room" (one _could_ call it a family room, but then that would imply that the Akatsuki was a family ^_^) with the rest of the Akatsuki until he'd begun to sneeze like crazy, causing everyone to shrink away and grumble about hygiene habits. Noticing the source of everyone's discomfort, Leader-sama finally told Itachi to go to his room and stay there until his symptoms calmed down. He didn't show it, but Itachi was pleasantly surprised. Usually, Leader-sama tended to adopt a "suck it up and move on" attitude with everyone (well, except _maybe_ Sasori, but that's probably because he can't get sick...), so Itachi couldn't believe that Leader-sama was practically giving him _the day off._ Itachi politely thanked Pein and headed to the kitchen to cook up somechicken-flavored instant ramen, in the hopes that the steam and the dehydrated chicken may help to rid him of this stupid cold. While he savored the scalding noodles, Kisame came into the kitchen and smiled his sharp grin when he saw Itachi scoop up noodle after noodle with his chopsticks, his long black hair coming loose from its ponytail in random tufts and puckers. He approached the kitchen table and sat next to his partner, saying, "Y'know, if you keep eating ramen like that, you're gonna choke."

Itachi gave him a sideways glare that could have fried a penguin, and continued to scarf down the ramen. Kisame grinned even wider and just sat there quietly, waiting for Itachi to finish. He noticed that Itachi ate slightly slower, and knew he'd made his point. Even though Kisame was the older member of their team, he knew that Itachi hated to be wrong. Kisame watched his partner gulp down the remaining broth from the bowl, and his eyes strayed again to Itachi's ponytail, and the sight of it bothered him. His partner's appearance was usually immaculate, not a nail chipped or a hair out of place, and seeing his hair do that made him want to fix it. A slight blush tinged his blue cheeks purple as he folded his hands to resist that temptation. It could only lead down dangerous paths, he realized. He continued to sit there, pointedly staring anywhere but at his partner as Itachi got up to rinse out his bowl and still sat there as Itachi walked past him on to his room.

Itachi sat on his bed, relaxing under the covers and reading a scroll that he'd been meaning to get to for a while. It was a scroll that he'd snatched from the nightstand of an old miser that he and Kisame killed on a mission not too long ago. Before long, the scroll began to go slack in his hands as the warmth of the broth he'd drank settled into his limbs and Itachi slowly fell asleep, scroll rolling off the bed and onto the tatami-matted floor.

He tossed and turned restlessly, tangling the thin sheets around his legs as he dreamed of Sasuke, chasing him all around a tiny park in Konoha. It was a memory from when they both had been much younger, a time when Itachi was still _'Aniki'_ to Sasuke, and not a hated enemy.

Not too long after Itachi fell asleep, a narrow shaft of light illuminated his room as the door quickly opened and shut again, a large form squeezed itself into the room and sat on the windowsill that faced Itachi's bed. Kisame knew that Itachi would be nothing less than _pissed_ if he found out that Kisame had just snuck into their room to watch him like some kind of stalker, but he didn't care. He wanted to see Itachi, asleep or not. He looked at Itachi's sleeping form, slightly nervous that he might wake up and see him there. He didn't really care _if_ Itachi-san saw him, he just didn't know what he would _do_. Kisame saw Itachi roll over, his hair getting stuck underneath his back, tangling with the mesh armor he always wore. The Mist-nin crept off the windowsill and walked toward Itachi, making little noise on the tatami mats. He stopped halfway to the bed, wondering to himself, _ Just what the hell am I doing? _He looked down, spotting the scroll that Itachi must have dropped. He picked up the scroll and rolled it up, setting it in the only empty place on the crowded shelf near the bed, meaning to head for the door before he did something he would regret. _For goodness' sake, Kisame; stop acting like a rapist. You don't like him like that._ But then he looked back at Itachi, who just looked more peaceful than he ever did during his waking hours, and felt something jerk in his stomach, accompanied by a feeling of warmth that told him that he was lying to himself. He slipped out the door, closing it softly behind him.

He slowly walked back to the "common room" just in time for everyone to turn and stare and for all conversation to die. _Great,_ Kisame thought. _Now what do they want? It was bad enough Leader-sama made me go check on Itachi, but now they've probably realized how long I was gone, too._ He walked to his favorite spot by the window and pointedly stared out at the trees and such. He didn't care what he looked at, as long as the others didn't see the massive blush that was turning him purple. The silence carried on for almost a minute, until a voice that Kisame knew to be Hidan's asked,

"So? How the fuck is he doing, shithead?"

"Yeah, Kisame-san! You were gone an awful long time!" Tobi's obnoxious whine assaulted his ears.

Kisame waited a moment before answering, "He was sleeping. He seemed fine."

"**Yeah, and you probably wanted to fuck him right then, huh?"** Zetsu's Black half chuckled, only darkening Kisame's plum complexion. He was sure his ears were showing it now, too. He said nothing and just kept staring out the window, hoping everyone would just leave him alone. It wasn't likely, but maybe if he wished it hard enough, it would come true.

"_Oh, leave him alone._" Zetsu's White half scolded the other, more crude Black half. "_It's not like we've never had a crush on anyone before._"


	3. Chapter 3

Itachi was beginning to get quite angry. He had practically turned the entire base upside down, muttering to himself about "people hiding things that don't belong to them", moving from room to room in a blur of motion. Anything that was a shade of purple caught his eye, and he would make a beeline for whatever it was and wouldn't move on until he determined that it wasn't what he was looking for. Sasori, ever the impatient one, finally asked Itachi just what he was searching for so violently.

Itachi glared at the red-headed puppet master. "My nail polish... I can't find it. It's my last bottle, and it's nearly gone, too. Have you seen it?"

Sasori was stunned that Itachi was actually _asking for help_ on something.

"No. But I thought I saw Tobi playing with some nail polish earlier. Not sure if it was yours, though."

Itachi raced off before Sasori had even finished speaking.

"Hmph." Sasori returned to practicing with his beloved puppets.


	4. Chapter 4

Itachi had always hated shopping (of any kind) with a passion. But he was _certain_ that there was a special place in Hell for the person who had invented the grocery store. He hated waiting in line, he was constantly worried that someone would recognize him, he couldn't stand searching for all the things that the Akatsuki "needed" *_cough cough_ Hidan's hairgel _cough_* and loathed going to the various tiny shops with Kakuzu muttering in his ear about how expensive the miso was. Kakuzu loved a good deal, but it seemed as if he were convinced that no matter how good a deal was, he could find a better deal elsewhere. And it's not as if Leader-sama had _asked_ Kakuzu to go with Itachi. Nope. Kakuzu _insisted_ on going, every single time. Itachi figured that Kakuzu was terrified that he would blow all their hard-earned money on Pocky and dango, but if that was the case, Kakuzu kept it to himself as he tagged along with Itachi to the nearest village to pick up the essentials.

"Let's see, we still need bread, an onion, and ginger," Itachi read from a tiny scrap of paper, scanning the line of shops in the main square of Konoha. (Why were they grocery shopping in Konoha? An excellent question, reader. Because Ame's prices are 'outrageous', and Konoha was closer to where their current mission was) Kakuzu pointed at a tiny vegetable stall. "That looks promising."

Itachi rolled his eyes and walked over to the stall, knowing that Kakuzu would haggle until the shopkeeper gave up. The one thing that Kakuzu had going for him was patience.

Itachi amused himself by watching the people that walked by the stall, wondering why Leader-sama always made _him_ go shopping when Kakuzu could clearly handle it himself. He watched a kid with thick, bushy eyebrows and a bowl haircut buy a green jumpsuit that was exactly the same as the one he already wore. Itachi watched the kid practically dance his way down the narrow lane, people stepping out of his way seemingly out of habit. Hearing the _click_ of Kakuzu's case, Itachi turned around just in time to see Kakuzu hand the scared-looking shopkeeper a couple of paper bills and a few tiny coins. Itachi squinted at them from under his hat, counting them rapidly. _Sixty yen for two ginger roots _and_ an onion? Wow. Most shopkeepers won't take under a hundred for the _onion_, much less ginger. _He glanced at the shopkeeper again, noticing the poor man's body language this time. He was backing away slowly, his hands shaking. _He's terrified. What did Kakuzu do to him?_ Itachi bagged the items that Kakuzu had practically stolen, and together the two Akatsuki turned and walked down the lane.

When they were well away from the village, Itachi finally had to know. "Kakuzu."

"Hm?" He appeared to be trying to add numbers in his head again, something Itachi usually didn't interrupt, but he had to know.

"What did you say to that man?" Itachi wasn't really expecting an answer.

Kakuzu's oddly-colored eyes crinkled at the corners, betraying an otherwise hidden smile.

"Oh, that. I casually mentioned that I could rip out his throat and hand it to him before he stopped breathing." Kakuzu said in his gravelly voice, with the air of someone remarking on the weather.

Itachi smirked under his hat and realized that maybe he didn't really mind Kakuzu's company that much after all.


	5. Chapter 5

Itachi didn't care what people might think. He was an Uchiha, and the Uchiha always get what they want. And besides, he had a sneaking suspicion that Kisame wanted him, also... He saw it in the way Kisame always had a sharp-toothed smile waiting for him, even when the Mist-nin was really, really angry about something. It was also in their few and brief exchanges during missions, the way Kisame met Itachi's gaze without flinching, when everyone else tended to look just over his shoulder or something. It was still amazing to Itachi how well they worked together, even with an age gap of eleven years between them. He was used to working alone, but he found that Kisame accompanying him on missions did not slow him down, rather, he felt he worked better with Kisame at his side, cutting down all who stood in the way of the Akatsuki's missions.

He knew that Kisame thought himself ugly, a monster. The concept disgusted him, and even pained him to think that such a beautiful creature could possibly think himself lesser to someone like that foul-mouthed Hidan, for example, simply because he resembled a shark. Kisame had no idea that Itachi felt the same about himself, but because of the things he'd done, not his appearance.

Itachi had always loved the killing machine of the deep, drawing many pictures of them when he was younger, taking what it needed to survive and leaving the rest alone. He saw Kisame as the same. He was really beginning to fall for him, a dangerous thing for the both of them. Itachi was afraid he'd never stop until Kisame knew exactly how he felt, and then terrified of what Kisame might say. What if he said it wasn't a good idea, because of their age difference? Or that it was inappropriate, because they were partners, and needed to keep business and pleasure from mingling? Or worse, that he simply wasn't into men at all? That all the attraction he'd seen was imagined, and Kisame was just being friendly? The mere thought was mortifying. Itachi wasn't sure he could take that kind of rejection from the man he'd been crushing on since the day they'd met. _Oh stop it, Itachi,_ he'd think to himself whenever this train of thought would sneak up on him. _You're acting like a woman. A _silly_ woman. If he doesn't like you, he doesn't like you. End of story._ These thoughts would keep him up long into the night, wasting several precious hours of sleep. Finally, he decided that he would just tell Kisame how he felt and get it over with, the consequences be damned.


	6. Chapter 6

Itachi walked quietly through the almost silent base, making little noise on his bare feet. He loved doing this every morning, enjoying the silence of the maze-like caves before the sun rose, bringing with it all the noise and hubbub of a criminal organization. He'd walk past the bedroom doors, past the common room, through the kitchen, and into the main cave's entrance.

Itachi would watch the sun crest over the hilly landscape, turning the clouds a dark shade of crimson. He considered that moment _his_ and his alone, the last moment of of the night and the first of the new day converging into a seamless tapestry purely for his enjoyment. Dawn.

Then he'd turn and walk back inside, quietly invigorated and ready to face the reality of criminal life.


	7. Chapter 7

Every member of Akatsuki seemed to have his or her own talent, something special that uniquely identified them. For example, Kisame had his water jutsus and Samehada, Kakuzu liked to kill people for money, and Tobi was... a good boy, or something, and Konan liked origami. Itachi thought about it and realized that just about everyone had their place within the organization, except for one person.

Hidan.

Itachi couldn't stand the foul-mouthed Jashinist.

Everything about the man irritated him; his constantly bare chest, the way he openly talked about the joys of sacrificing innocent people to his beloved Jashin. Every morning the accursed albino would wake up, complaining about something or other. His whining voice carried easily through the thin walls of the base, waking up Itachi and Kisame just in time to hear,

"Fuck, why do I have to get up so damn early? Jashindammit!"

Itachi was usually too tired to care about the immortal's complaining that early in the morning, he'd always been more of a night person and hated to get up in the morning as much as Hidan did. Not that he'd actually admit it to Hidan, but this was probably the only thing that Itachi agreed with him about.

Itachi and Kisame would go about their day, doing missions and just trying to get enough money to bribe Kakuzu into giving them a vacation. They knew it probably wouldn't work, but it was worth a shot.

The pair would return to the base, Itachi worn-out and irritable, Kisame just content to have finished a mission. Konan would have stir-fry or ramen waiting for them in the fridge, and they would microwave it back to steamy goodness, only to have a frazzled-looking Hidan run into the kitchen, screaming,

"Holy shit, I'm fucking starving. Rituals always make me so damned hungry."

_Then stop doing them,_ Itachi thought bitterly, but wouldn't dare say it aloud. Then Hidan would never shut up about Itachi being a heathen, or whatever.

After their pitiful meal (it was nothing against Konan's cooking, Itachi was just too picky for his own good and thought that everything but tea, cabbage, and kelp onigiri was beneath him), Itachi and Kisame would usually go hang out in the common room with whatever members had already returned from their respective missions. But on one particular day, Itachi decided to go back to their room and read a book instead. As he walked back to their room, Kisame silently followed Itachi down the narrow corridor. After a few steps, Kisame heard Itachi sigh softly before saying, "What are you doing, Kisame?"

"Nothing. What are you doing?" Kisame said, still following Itachi.

"Attempting to find some peace and quiet." Itachi mumbled, reaching their door and stepping inside.

Kisame walked in behind him and sat on his bed, pulling Samehada out of its strap and standing it up near his bed, and looked over just in time to see a shadow at their door. He stared at it, trying to figure out who it might be. Kisame glanced at Itachi to see him unrolling a scroll, so he clicked his teeth together to get Itachi's attention. Red-stained eyes swiveled up to Kisame's whitish ones, and Kisame pointedly glanced at the door. Itachi slowly turned toward the mysterious shadow, doing the handseals for a Fireball Jutsu at the same time, making a jet of fire go out the door.

"Ouch! Shit! Dammit!* What the fuck, Itachi?" Hidan's voice echoed in the hallway, sounding further and further away as Hidan ran back to his room, leaving the unmistakable stench of burning hair in his wake.

Kisame started to laugh, and Itachi's eyes shifted back to their normal, black form. "What's so funny?" the raven-haired boy asked.

Barely breathing at this point, Kisame manged to say, "I've been waiting for you to do something like that for a long time. I see the look on your face every time you're around him. You can't stand him."

At this, the corner of Itachi's lip tilted up ever so slightly. (Which would be like anyone else turning cartwheels and laughing their ass off) "Was it that obvious?"

"To me, it was. I don't know about anyone else, but I definitely saw that one coming. And besides, I don't thi-" Kisame was cut off by the sound of someone screaming, "WHAT!"

Itachi and Kisame looked at each other. "Kakuzu," They said in unison. Kisame strode over to their window and tugged it open. "After you," he told Itachi.

This time, Itachi really _did_ smile, grabbing his hat to shield him from the rain.

He climbed out the window, his feet making a _squish_ sound on the soggy grass, Kisame not far behind. He quickly walked to the nearest tree, reaching the topmost branch with a few small jumps, and looked down to see Kisame staring up at him.

"Are you coming or not?" Itachi said in a slightly raised voice to make himself heard over the rain.

Kisame grimaced at the sight of the wet tree, but started to climb it anyway.

He was about halfway up the tree when Kakuzu poked his head out of their window, trying to see where the "Dynamic Duo" (XD Sorry, I had to say it) had gone.

"Itachi! You have to pay for that!" Kakuzu bellowed into the rainstorm.

"Why? He probably improved the look of the hallway. And besides, Hidan was lurking." Kisame shouted back before Itachi could say anything.

Itachi smirked under his hat. (Because no one could see him do it)

Kakuzu made a frustrated noise and ducked back inside, leaving Itachi and Kisame alone in the tree. In the rain.

"Did you notice that Kakuzu didn't say anything about Hidan's hair?" Itachi said after a while, looking sideways at Kisame.

Kisame grinned. "Yeah, because he doesn't care. Although Hidan will probably bug him about getting extensions or something silly like that." Kisame then frowned, trying to keep the water dripping out of his now soaked hair from getting into his hair.

Itachi thought about it for a moment, then started climbing back down the tree. "Hn. But Kakuzu will probably suggest that Hidan just shave what's left of it off."

Kisame started to laugh at the mental image of a bald Hidan, and then they both went back inside, ready to face the Jashinist's "wrath".

*I kinda stole this line from Aphrodite in the House of Night series... It seemed like a perfect fit...

**Okay this is where it gets interesting. I need your input for the next few chapters. I have NO IDEA what to write. So, if you have any ideas for Itachi Drabbles, or even ideas for other members of Akatsuki, please tell me! The continuation of this series depends on it!**


	8. Chapter 8

"No."

"Come on. Just do it once. Ne, Itachi-san? Just once."

"Never."

Kisame growled in frustration. "Why the hell not? It's just hot sauce."

Itachi glared at him. "Because I said no."

Kisame folded his arms and glared back at his partner, thoughtful. He suddenly had an idea.

"I'll hide the dango."

Itachi laughed humorlessly. "Nice try. I don't eat those anymore."

Kisame stomped his foot. "Dammit, Itachi! Just try it!"

Itachi looked like he was considering it, but then shrugged and grinned. "Nope."

The blue nin growled under his breath and stomped back to their room.

Itachi waited until he was sure his partner was really gone, then reached for the bottle of hot sauce and opened it. Sniffing it once, he drained the entire thing.

Kisame poked his head around the door and watched his partner lick his lips. "What! That doesn't bother you at all?"

Itachi turned to look at his stunned teammate. Holding up the now empty bottle, he grinned and said, "Fire chakra nature. Spicy things don't affect me."

Kisame just stared at him open mouthed. "Not in the slightest?"

Itachi stared at him for a moment before letting out a huge belch.

Kisame started to laugh. "I knew that couldn't be it."

Itachi just shrugged and threw the bottle away.

**A/N: Well, there ya have it. The newest chapter of Itachi Drabbles, my most popular series~**

**Hope you all enjoyed it, and that you will review! As always, I don't own Itachi or Kisame, they are property of Kishimoto-sama. (I love Itachi's trolling in this chapter ^^) Sorry it was so short this time!**


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